I run a rural mailroute that is 100 miles long with 395 stops and it's mostly gravel roads. I have a 95 Ford Explorer with the automatic trans that I try to use for the winter months when I need 4WD. I bought it with 42,000 miles on it and have 92,000 miles on it now. The trans went bad at 72,000 and had it rebuilt. I was told at the trans shop that this autotrans that is used in the Explorer is not a good transmission. I'm using very kind words here. Actually he said it was a POS. He told me anyone was very fortunate to get 80,000 miles out of them. Well I'm going to keep using the Explorer for winter use but I need to find a vehicle to use for the rest of the year. I would like to get a 2WD Ranger if possible. I want to get a 2000 model or newer. What I need to know is the transmissions that are used in the newer Rangers any better than the ones used in 1995? Does the 3.0 use the same tranny as the 4.0? Thanks for your help!